Beijing closes major coal-fired power plant

Beijing closed a large coal-fired power plant on Friday in its downtown area, replacing it with a gas-fired plant to reduce pollution.

The thermal power plant of the state-owned Guohua Electric Power Co. closed the 400-megawatt power generation units, according to a statement from the city’s economic planning agency.

The news came a day after the closure of another thermal power plant run by Beijing Energy Investment Group in western Beijing.

With four major coal-fired power plants once operating in Beijing, the first was closed last July and the last is due to be shut next year.

The initiative is part of the government’s efforts to clear the air in the Chinese capital, which often suffers from heavy smog.

The introduction of four new gas-fired power plants will help cut annual emissions by 10,000 tonnes of sulfur dioxide, 19,000 tonnes of nitric oxide and 3,000 tonnes of dust.

According to the clean air action plan (2013-2017), Beijing is aiming to reduce annual coal consumption by 13 million tonnes - by 2014 consumption had been cut by 4.5 million tonnes.

The city plans to reduce coal consumption by another 4 million tonnes in 2015 and limit the annual coal consumption to 15 million tonnes, according to the municipal development and reform commission.